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Roman Sionis (New Earth)
Black Mask made a brief appearance as part of an enormous mob of Arkham Asylum inmates that Jeremiah Arkham unleashed upon Batman, as part of a "disciplinary exercise". The crime lord was presumably beaten senseless, much like his fellow inmates. Later on, Black Mask returned to crime after an unspecified breakout at Arkham Asylum and rebuilt the False Face Society (complete with an unwilling Circe by his side) and a new, powerful lieutenant named Tattoo. He ordered the False-Facers to burn down various Wayne Enterprises-owned buildings around Gotham. Batman infiltrated the False Face Society under the name "Skullface". From the inside, Skullface foiled another arson attempt with the help of Robin, but he was unable to stop Tattoo from kidnapping Lucius Fox. Black Mask locked Fox in his hideout and interrogated him for information about Bruce Wayne. "Skullface" attacked the crime lord, saving Fox but revealing himself as Bruce Wayne. After a brief fight, Fox was rescued by Robin and Bruce changed into Batman. Black Mask and Tatto tried to escape but Batman caught up with them, fought and beat Tattoo while Black Mask leaped off of the pier and escaped. The police searched for his body, but found only a decoy. Batman - already in the throes of a mid-life crisis - took this failure extremely hard on himself. Black Mask remained at large for a long time until he resurfaced, still leading the False Face Society, and killed rival mobster "Dirty Dan" Doyle in an ambush shootout. ''Detective Comics'' #684 Later still, Black Mask was approached by a young hoodlum named Johnny LaMonica, AKA the Black Spider, who wished to join the False Face Society. Finding LaMonica irritating, Black Mask demanded that the young man "make his bones" first by crashing another masquerade ball being held at Wayne Manor. The Black Spider did as ordered, but failed to hurt a single person, and was barely able to escape Batman. Batman would later learn, however, that LaMonica was a double agent for "Turk" Ottoman, a rival of Black Mask. Realizing that Black Spider intended to kill Black Mask one way or another to make way for his true employer, Batman tracked Black Mask to an abandoned theater. Though Batman was too late to stop LaMonica from killing several False-Facers, he was able to prevent LaMonica from killing Black Mask. Deeming the armed Black Spider to be the greater threat, Batman fought with LaMonica, having no choice but to allow Black Mask to escape in the confusion. The next night, Batman staged a desperate and violent manhunt for the crimelord, but to no avail. ''Batman'' #518, #519, #520 When a new and radical vigilante known as Lock-Up appeared in Gotham, Black Mask and the False Face Society became unwitting partners in a plan concocted by Batman and the Gotham police to capture the self-declared crimefighter. One of the False-Facers' top enforcers, Joe Rabbit, was captured and pressured to turn state's evidence against Black Mask, receiving high publicity from the local media. This was meant to lure in Lock-Up, who targeted any and all criminals that managed to escape prison sentences. Unexpectedly, however, Black Mask sent in a gang of False-Facers to kill the "traitor", nearly scuttling the plan. For a brief period, Black Mask attempted to expand his operations into Gotham's sister city, Bludhaven. To this end, he ordered a team of False-Facers to kidnap the "children" (really a dozen unfertilized eggs awaiting in vitro fertilization) of the Mihn family, the head of Bludhaven's Vietnamese mobs. Black Mask planned to hold the eggs hostage until the Mihns gave him access to Bludhaven's heroin trade, but the scheme was ultimately foiled by the recently-arrived Nightwing. ''Nightwing'' (Vol 2) #1 On one occasion, Black Mask approached Detective Harvey Bullock with a deal: in exchange for a disc filled with information about the False-Facers' rivals in the underworld - "enough potential cases for ten successful police careers" - Bullock would give a false testimony at the upcoming trial of Johnny Poodles - a top False-Facer - and scuttle the entire case. Bullock initially refused, but later gave in, and began to eliminate Black Mask's competition around Gotham. When Bullock's resolve weakened, Black Mask went so far as to offer him the identity of a serial killer known as the "Widow-Whacker" - a False-Facer himself. In the end, however, Bullock's integrity won out, and he gave an honest testimony at the trial that ensured Poodles' conviction. Angered, Black Mask sent several False-Facers to kill Bullock, but Bullock managed to lure the False-Facers into the territory of a rival biker gang, resulting in a shootout that left only Bullock himself alive. ''Batman: Bullock's Law'' #1 Crime's New Face After reading about the Spanish Inquisition during an unspecified period, Black Mask underwent an enormous shift in personality and modus operandi. His obsession with masks began to mutate, merging with a new interest in physical pain and torture. Eventually, Black Mask came to think of torture as an "art form", and his own mask as proof that he had survived his own personal torture - the searing of his mask into his face. As a result, he began to make heavy use of physical torture for both business and pleasure. ''Catwoman: Secret Files and Origins'' #1 Once Gotham had been declared a "No Man's Land" in the wake of the Cataclysm earthquake, Black Mask, like the other released Arkham inmates, gathered a gang and seized a piece of "turf" in the abandoned, half-destroyed Gotham - in his case, the Fashion District. This time, however, he no longer wore his trademark mask, and he no longer pursued money or power; instead, he began to espouse a nihilistic philosophy that claimed Gotham's "true face" had been revealed by the earthquake. Black Mask's followers, now calling themselves the "True-Facers", became a full-blown cult, horrifically disfiguring their own faces and doing the same to anyone who continued to uphold a "false face". The former crimelord and his followers cut a bloody swath across the ravaged Gotham, heading for the still-standing Gotham clock tower and mutilating - and sometimes murdering - anyone in the way. The clock tower, still the base of operations for Oracle and in the middle of "Blue Boy" (former GCPD) territory, nevertheless proved an easy target for Black Mask and his enormous mob - to the point where a desperate Oracle was ready to shoot Black Mask with an emergency sniper rifle. Black Mask's life, however, was inadvertently saved with the arrival of the new Batgirl, who beat many of the True-Facers into submission before publicly breaking Black Mask's arm. Upon seeing their leader humbled, the rest of the True-Facers fled, and Batman soon arrived to take Black Mask to Blackgate Penitentiary (now run by the vigilante's tenuous ally, Lock-Up). ''Batman'' #565, ''Detective Comics'' #732 Later on, the incarcerated Black Mask would play a small but pivotal role in Nightwing's mission - on Batman's orders - to end the alliance with Lock-Up and retake Blackgate. After Lock-Up and his lieutenants discovered the Nightwing prowling about the island, they subdued the vigilante and threw him into a holding cell with many incarcerated super-villains, most of whom howled for his blood. Black Mask, along with the Scarecrow, opposed this short-sighted fervor for revenge, reasoning that a living Nightwing could serve as a bargaining chip. The inmates ultimately decided to not kill Nightwing, and Nightwing paid them in kind by helping them escape the cell. Nightwing, however, had no intention of letting the inmates run free once again, and abandoned them shortly before taking down Lock-Up and his cronies. ''Nightwing'' (Vol 2) #35, #36 #37 Pride Before A Fall After the United States government lifted the No Man's Land and welcomed Gotham back into the union, Black Mask returned to his traditional role as a mob kingpin, though he completely abandoned the False Face Society in favor of ordinarily-attired criminals. Soon, he turned his attentions to the drug trade in Gotham's notoriously crime-ridden East End, enlisting the help of many corrupt policemen to secure his hold over the area. His activities, however, eventually led him to clash with the East End's newly-appointed "protector", Catwoman. After two policemen under Black Mask's command shot Catwoman's friend Holly, Catwoman retaliated with an elaborate revenge scheme, enlisting the help of police detective Crispus Allen and private eye Slam Bradley. The scheme was a total success, breaking up a heroin-diamond exchange that the crimelord had planned with Gotham's Russian mob: the heroin was destroyed, while Catwoman kept the diamonds for herself. To top everything off, several of the policemen on the crimelord's payroll were removed in a corruption bust. ''Catwoman'' (Vol 3) #6, #7, #8, #9 The enraged Black Mask sought vengeance on Catwoman, and eventually caught wind of rumors concerning a woman named Sylvia Sinclair - an incarcerated woman who supposedly knew Catwoman's secret identity. Black Mask sent his lieutenant Xavier Dylan to confirm this information, and offer Sylvia a deal: if she agreed to help Black Mask, he would arrange for her release from prison. In the meantime, Black Mask continued to pursue the missing diamonds, violently interrogating - and eventually killing - several well-known underworld traders in the process. ''Catwoman: Secret Files and Origins'' #1 Sylvia, in reality a former childhood friend of Selina Kyle's, agreed to Black Mask's terms in order to settle a personal grudge against Selina. With Sylvia's assistance, the crimelord masterminded the bombing of a community center that Selina had funded, the abduction and torture of Selina's sister Maggie (compounded by the murder of Maggie's husband, Simon), and the near-murder of Holly and Slam. Catwoman eventually discovered Black Mask's involvement and location, having threatened the information out of Dylan. Subsequently, the thief burst into Black Mask's penthouse to confront the crimelord and her traitorous friend. To Catwoman's dismay, Sylvia and Black Mask had one more weapon: a captive Holly, brought to them by the delinquent children of the East End. Catwoman immediately surrendered upon seeing Holly, and with Sylvia holding the thief at gunpoint, Black Mask led Catwoman into his torture chamber. Upon entering the chamber and seeing her sister inside the chamber, near-comatose from sheer trauma, Catwoman begged Black Mask to release Maggie. In response, Black Mask offered the thief a deal: he would release Maggie and send her to an emergency room, but in exchange, Catwoman would agree to be tortured to death in Maggie's place. Catwoman agreed to these conditions, but after she had been properly chained, Black Mask immediately went back on his word and ordered Maggie killed. This betrayal had been anticipated by Catwoman, who immediately activated a bomb she'd earlier planted in the crimelord's penthouse. While Black Mask and Sylvia were distracted by the explosion, Catwoman wrested herself free of Black Mask's chains. Panicked, Black Mask fled the torture chamber, leaving Sylvia behind to stall Catwoman. Sylvia, however, proved a poor match for Catwoman in hand-to-hand combat, and was quickly defeated. Catwoman then confronted Black Mask, leaving the crimelord with nowhere to run. A desperate Black Mask attempted to take Holly hostage a second time, but was outmaneuvered by Catwoman, who subjected him to a beating that left him disarmed and hanging from his penthouse's balcony by one hand. Black Mask begged for help, but the vengeful Catwoman gave him none; seconds later, his grip broke, and he fell several stories to his apparent death. ''Catwoman'' (Vol 3) #12, #13, #14, #15, #16 War Games Unbeknownst to anyone, Black Mask survived his fall. Some time later, when an enormous cross-city gang war erupted, due to Spoiler faultily implementing Batman's "War Games" stratagem, Black Mask began to build allies while keeping his own involvement secret - though Hush rebuffed him, the Russian mobster Alexandra Kosov accepted his offer of partnership. Shortly after, Black Mask attacked the home of Diego Escabedo, current leader of the Escabedo Cartel, and tortured him to get information. He did the same to the leaders of the Lucky Hand Triad and other minor crime lords. After that, Black Mask attacked The Ventriloquist and Scarface, forcing the man to work for him. Shortly after, Black Mask murdered the gang leader Orpheus, who was secretly an agent of Batman, in the presence of Spoiler. Black Mask overpowered Spoiler after a long struggle and subsequently, he tortured her for information about Orpheus and Batman. The crimelord was then paid another visit by Hush, who, as a peace token, offered Black Mask the location of the Batcave. Soon, Black Mask posed as Orpheus, and met with Batman after a sudden attack from the mercenary Zeiss. Black Mask managed to keep the situation in hand, even arranging Zeiss' escape. As Orpheus, Black Mask followed Batman's plan and went to Robinson Park, where all the criminals in Gotham were gathered. He came to the podium of the park's amphitheater and revealed his intentions to kill all of his "competitors" and with aid from Dr. Death, he turned the criminals against Batman and the other vigilantes. In the midst of all the chaos, Batman was able to unmask "Orpheus", but the revealed Black Mask managed to escape with help from the Scarecrow. Black Mask then returned to his hideout where he had been holding and torturing Spoiler, only to find that she had freed herself in his absence. Spoiler attacked him by surprise and got the upper hand in the fight. However, Spoiler couldn't finish him and Black Mask shot her in the shoulder, allowing her to go away, barely alive. Then, Black Mask traveled to Gotham's North End along with Killer Croc and Scarecrow. He took reporter Arturo Rodriguez and his cameraman to use their live broadcast and reveal what he believed to be the Batcave. Leading all the criminals in Gotham, Black Mask took them to the Gotham Clock Tower. Black Mask bypassed Oracle's defenses and confronted Oracle, broadcasting the situation live in order to lure Batman. Batman arrived and both of them started a brutal fight to death. Oracle initiated a self-destruct sequence within the clock tower, forcing Batman to abandon the fight in order to save her. Black Mask slipped away in the confusion and as the city-wide gang war drew to a close and Gotham began to rebuild, all of the surviving gangs crowned him the undisputed king of the underworld. Under the Hood As the crime lord of Gotham, Black Mask started recruiting people to mantain his status and the first person he looked for was Mister Freeze. He was also informed of a minor criminal taking over the drug dealing racket, but Black Mask dismissed the newcomer as a threat. Black Mask built a new Cryo-Suit for Freeze and kept an eye on Red Hood's activities. Shortly after, Black Mask was informed of the loss of his shipment and the destruction of Amazo, causing him to send Freeze to secure any remainings of the shipment while Red Hood called Black Mask to tell him that he stole the Kryptonite shipment from him. Black Mask reached an agreement with Red Hood and then he sent Mr. Freeze to kill Red Hood during the exchange. In addition, both the Hill and the East End - the former with assassin-turned-hero Onyx leading its gangs, the latter with Catwoman as its protector - continued to defy his reach. An attempt to bring the Hill under control using Killer Croc (who had been rendered a mindlessly obedient enforcer, thanks to the Mad Hatter) failed; the two female vigilantes teamed up and subdued Croc, even clawing a taunting message for Black Mask into Croc's hide ''Catwoman'' (Vol 3) #43. The blow was worsened when Croc later managed to break free from Black Mask's control; the freed Croc immediately "resigned", and killed several of Black Mask's underlings. ''Batman'' #642 Some time after these events, Black Mask attempted to buy the Gotham Museum, valuing it for the real estate. Unwittingly, this action entangled him in Hush's latest scheme to kill Batman. While Man-Bat was re-succumbing to his latent personality and going on homicidal rampages, Hush sent Murmur to frame Langstrom by killing several people around Gotham - including a guard at the museum. The guard's murder disturbed Black Mask's plans for peaceful, secret negotiations, and another murder - this time, of a prostitute in his organization - led Black Mask to declare war on Man-Bat. ''Man-Bat'' (Vol 3) #2, #3 Hush gleefully encouraged Black Mask's underlings to believe that he was after control of the Gotham underworld, when his real aim all along was to trap Batman. Eventually, all parties involved - Black Mask, Hush, Murmur, Batman, and Man-Bat - clashed with each other in one of Black Mask's underground torture chambers. After a convoluted series of events, Black Mask was shot by Hush, and left unconscious while the entire chamber caught on fire. Batman barely managed to save the crimelord by escaping with him through the sewers below. ''Man-Bat'' (Vol 3) #4, #5 Black Mask's fortunes took an even steeper downturn when the emergence of "reformer" Aaron Black (really Cluemaster in disguise) inspired Gotham to take a renewed interest in the events that surrounded the "War Games" debacle - specifically, the death of Stephanie Brown. At first, Black Mask hoped to capitalize on the wave of negative publicity raised by Black, going so far as to disguise himself as Batman and attacking (and sometimes outright killing) every person with some sort of connection to Stephanie. His attempted murder of Aaron Black himself, however, was interrupted by the Joker. As Black Mask fought the Joker, the real Batman arrived on the scene, broke up the fight, and gave chase to Black Mask; after a lengthy chase, the crimelord very narrowly managed to escape. ''Detective Comics'' #809, ''Batman'' #643 A few days later, Black Mask re-donned his Batman disguise and interrupted a live broadcast of Arturo Rodriguez's talk show, attacking both Rodriguez guest speaker Crystal Brown. Though the real Batman appeared on the scene and stopped him, Black Mask was able to escape again, this time by burning Stephanie's medical records (which Batman had desperately been searching for in hopes of finding the truth behind Stephanie's death). Shortly afterward, Black Mask ran afoul of the Joker again. During the "rematch" between the two men, the Joker revealed the reason for his grudge against Black Mask: the crimelord had been responsible for the death of Stephanie Brown, a former Robin, and the Joker considered the "job" of killing any and all Robins his exclusive privilege. ''Detective Comics'' #810 Eventually, Batman and the police found the two men, but not before the Joker shot Black Mask with an acid dart coated in super-epoxy. The dart slowly and painfully burned itself into Black Mask's skull, and was only neutralized with Batman's help. Batman then beat both criminals into submission, and turned them in to the police. Black Mask's delivery to justice, however, was short-lived; during his arraignment, he was able to escape once again, killing two armed guards, three bystanders, and the presiding arraignment judge in the process. ''Batman'' #644 Although he remained atop Gotham's underworld, Black Mask soon found that the Red Hood's attacks on his empire were worsening. Nearly all of his associates and hideouts were under attack, much of his merchandise was being destroyed, and at one point, the Red Hood even used a rocket launcher to destroy his personal office. Angry and desperate, Black Mask accepted an offer of help from Deathstroke and the new Secret Society: in exchange for joining the society, he would be supplied with top-tier supervillains that would help him kill the Red Hood. Black Mask accepted, but was greatly disappointed when the "help" turned out to be Captain Nazi, the Hyena, and Count Vertigo, none of whom were particularly infamous or powerful; his fears were quickly confirmed when the Red Hood, with Batman's help, defeated the trio and even killed Captain Nazi. ''Batman'' #646, #647 To his surprise, Black Mask was then given a peace offer from the Red Hood, who claimed that he now wanted to be business partners. This put Black Mask in a bind: he was desperate to stop the Red Hood's attacks, but knew that none of his lieutenants would agree to a partnership with a man who had killed so many of their friends and associates. Black Mask ultimately agreed to the deal, and then killed all of his lieutenants, meaning to replace them with younger successors that would be more accepting of the Red Hood. When the Red Hood reneged on their deal, Black Mask flew into a murderous rage, and attacked the vigilante. ''Batman'' #648 After a long, difficult battle, Black Mask killed his hated foe just as Batman arrived on the scene. To his frustration, Black Mask found from Batman that the dead Red Hood was a decoy; the real Red Hood had orchestrated the fight from miles away. Black Mask, upon realizing that Batman knew the Red Hood personally, demanded to know why Batman had not stopped him sooner. Batman gave the crimelord no concrete answer, and ordered him to stay put, leaving Black Mask trapped in a minefield of miniature explosives. ''Batman'' #649 Black Mask eventually escaped this predicament, and returned to running Gotham's underworld. Final Days After a group of supervillains (including Hugo Strange, the Cheetah, and Angle Man, among others) temporarily invaded the East End, Black Mask began to take a new interest in Catwoman, who had driven all of them out. Black Mask forged a new alliance with Angle Man, and proceeded to kidnap Slam Bradley. He then put Bradley through extreme physical torture, but was interrupted by the arrival of the supervillain Smart Bomb, who was in reality an undercover policeman and Slam Bradley's son. Faced with Smart Bomb's massive arsenal, Black Mask surrendered his mutilated (but alive) captive without a fight. ''Catwoman'' (Vol 3) #50, ''Catwoman'' (Vol 3) #51 This episode convinced Catwoman (who was already undergoing an identity crisis from the revelation that Zatanna had brainwashed her into becoming a crimefighter) that Black Mask could no longer be allowed to run free. Catwoman invaded Black Mask's penthouse, and eventually cornered the crimelord, who mockingly stated his new plan to make Catwoman his "arch-nemesis" by killing all of her loved ones. Even when Catwoman held him at gunpoint, Black Mask continued to taunt her, believing that she still considered herself a hero. He was quickly proven wrong when Catwoman shot him at point blank, killing him. ''Catwoman'' (Vol 3) #52 While the events of Infinite Crisis (particularly Superboy-Prime's assault on the reality barrier) occurred shortly after this, Roman remained dead; several individuals in the Gotham City police continued to investigate his murder during One Year Later). The identity of the Black Mask would later be assumed by Jeremiah Arkham. Blackest Night ]] Nekron's actions during Blackest Night led to Roman's temporary resurrection, as a member of the Black Lantern Corps. The reanimated Black Mask immediately tracked down Catwoman, intending to painfully kill her, but became frustrated when she refused to show any fear. As a means of provoking Catwoman, Black Mask invaded the Adams Psychiatric Institute, where the catatonic Maggie Kyle was still being held, and used his Black Lantern Ring to transform it into a replica of his old torture chamber. Catwoman and her new allies Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy quickly tracked down Black Mask and, after some difficulties, trapped him inside a giant pitcher plant that would continue to digest his regenerating body in an eternal loop, keeping him utterly helpless. In one respect, however, Black Mask was successful; his reappearance at the psychiatric hospital triggered Maggie's fragile psyche, infusing her with a burning hatred for Catwoman. Catwoman (Volume 3) #83 After Nekron's defeat, Roman presumably returned to death. | Powers = | Abilities = * : Black Mask is arguably the greatest criminal strategist and organiser in Gotham, having taken almost full control of the city's underworld on at least two occasions. * : While Roman proved to be a poor businessman prior to becoming Black Mask, he eventually became skilled enough to maintain a massive criminal empire. * * : Black Mask is a formidable master of disguise as well as a highly gifted actor, as he was able to fool even the deductive skills of Batman when disguised as Orpheus. He most often uses face putty or plastic masks to hide his skull-head and look like someone else. ** : He has led almost all of Gotham to believe he was Batman when donning his suit. * : Roman Sionis is an excellent marksman who always carries at least two semi-automatic handguns. He has proven capable of hitting highly nimble athletes (like Jason Todd and Catwoman) in mid-air with relatively little effort and has also shot mid-flight batarangs away from himself. * : Black Mask is a highly accomplished athlete and hand to hand combatant who has been shown fighting on par with the likes of Nightwing, Red Hood, Robin, Catwoman, and even Batman himself on at least one occasion. In the last case, however, Batman later mentioned that he had been previously exhausted by three days of nonstop fighting in Gotham's citywide gang wars. * : Perhaps Black Mask's most defining skill is his mastery of both physical and psychological torture, which he often uses either to extract information, or simply to torment his enemies. * : Black Mask is an expert on torture techniques that would make talk even the most strong-willed person. | Strength = | Weaknesses = * : While not traditionally insane by any recognizable disease or mental defect, Roman is criminally insane which means he cannot tell the difference between right and wrong. | Equipment = * Toxic Masks: Early in his criminal career, Black Mask often made use of masks laced with Janus Cosmetics' defective makeup. A heavy enough dose of the toxic makeup could kill a grown man in thirty seconds when applied to unprotected skin. Roman also occasionally used masks with more diluted amounts of the makeup as torture devices. * Black Lantern Ring: While a member of the Black Lantern Corps, Black Mask possessed a Black Lantern Ring and was endowed with all of its abilities, including energy constructs, flight, and emotional reading. | Transportation = | Weapons = * Firearms: Roman has used a variety of firearms throughout his criminal career, beginning with a single .45 pistol that he stole from the Sionis manor. Shortly before his death, he had progressed to the point of using a Thompson submachine gun with ease. * Various Others: Roman has been shown using a variety of crude, sharp-edged weapons, as well as the use of everyday objects including kitchen knives, steel pipes, and electricity cords which he slowly drips with water to cause mild electric shocks. | Notes = | Trivia = * Black Mask is very resourceful when it comes to torture, murder, violence and business. As such he's used various kinds of tools and techniques over the years. * Black Mask's face is actually a mask, from a collection he's kept, which was seared onto his face and blackened by fire. ** Roman has been shown, with his mask, the ability to control the weak minded in Arkham Asylum. He is able to control all of the inmates with ease and almost controlled the Batman. The mind control easily stops with a blow to the face. * According to his headstone (as seen in Blackest Night), Roman was born in 1971, and died in 2008, at the age of 37 or 38. | Recommended = * Batman: War Games * Batman: Broken City * Batman: Under the Hood * Catwoman (Volume 3) | DC = | Wikipedia = Black Mask (comics) | Links = * Black Mask at the DCU Guide }} Category:Arkham Asylum inmates Category:Black Lantern Corps members